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International Workshop
N E W T R E N D S I N C O G N I T I V E S C I E N C E
NTCS '97
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"Does Representation need Reality?"
Perspectives from Cognitive Science, Neuroscience,
Epistemology, and Artificial Life
Vienna, Austria, May 13 - 16, 1997
with plenary talks by:
Georg Dorffner, Ernst von Glasersfeld, Stevan Harnad,
Wolf Singer, and Sverre Sjoelander
organized by the Austrian Society of Cognitive Science (ASoCS)
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Latest information can be retrieved from the conference WWW-page
<http://www.univie.ac.at/cognition/ntcs97.htm>
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P u r p o s e
___________________________________________________________________________
The goal of this single-track conference is to investigate and discuss new
approaches and movements in cognitive science in a workshop-like atmosphere.
Among the topics which seem to have emerged in the last years are:
embodiment of knowledge, system theoretic and computational neuroscience
approaches to cognition, dynamics in recurrent neural architectures,
evolutionary and artificial life approaches to cognition, and
(epistemological) implications for perception and representation,
constructivist concepts and the problem of knowledge representation,
autopoiesis, implications for epistemology and philosophy (of science).
Evidence for a failure of the traditional understanding of neural
representation converges from several fields. Neuroscientific results in the
last decade have shown that single cell representations with hierarchical
processing towards representing units seems not the way the cortex
represents environmental entities. Instead, distributed cell ensemble coding
has become a popular concept for representation, both in computational and
in empirical neuroscience. However, new problems arise from the new
concepts. The problem of binding the distributed parts into a uniform
percept can be "solved" by introducing synchronization of the member
neurons. A deeper (epistemological) problem, however, is created by
recurrent architectures within ensembles generating an internal dynamics in
the network. The cortical response to an environmental stimulus is no longer
dominated by stimulus properties themselves, but to a considerable degree by
the internal state of the network. Thus, a clear and stable reference
between a representational state (e.g. in a neuron, a Hebbian ensemble, an
activation state, etc.) and the environmental state becomes questionable.
Already learned experiences and expectancies might have an impact on the
neural activity which is as strong as the stimulus itself. Since these
internally stored experiences are constantly changing, the notion of (fixed)
representations is challenged. At this point, system theory and
constructivism, both investigating the interaction between environment and
organism at an abstract level, come into the scene and turn out to provide
helpful epistemological concepts. The goal of this conference is to discuss
these phenomena and their implications for the understanding of
representation, semantics, language, cognitive science, and artificial life.
Contrary to many conferences in this field, the focus is on
interdisciplinary cooperation and on conceptual and epistemological
questions, rather than on technical details. We are trying to achieve this
by giving more room to discussion and interaction between the participants
(e.g., invited comments on papers, distribution of papers to the
participants before the conference, etc.). According to the
interdisciplinary character of cognitive science, we welcome papers/talks
from the fields of artificial life, empirical, cognitive, and computational
neuroscience, philosophy (of science), epistemology, anthropology, computer
science, psychology, and linguistics.
T o p i c s
___________________________________________________________________________
The conference is centered around but not restricted to the following
topics:
1. Representation - epistemological concepts and findings from
(computational) neuroscience, cognitive science (recurrent neural
architectures, top-down processing, etc.), and philosophy;
2. Alternatives to representation - applying constructivism to cognitive
systems;
3. Modeling language, communication, and semantics as a dynamical,
evolutionary and/or adaptive process;
4. Representation and cognition in artificial life;
5. What is the role of simulation in understanding cognition?
I n v i t e d S p e a k e r s
___________________________________________________________________________
Besides submitted papers the conference will also feature plenary talks by
invited speakers who are leaders in their fields. The following is a list
of invited speakers in alphabetical order:
o Georg Dorffner, Univ. of Vienna (A)
o Ernst von Glasersfeld, Univ. of Amherst, MA (USA)
o Stevan Harnad, Univ. of Southampton (GB)
o Rolf Pfeifer, Univ. of Zurich (CH)
o Wolf Singer, Max Planck Institut fuer Hirnforschung, Frankfurt (D)
o Sverre Sjoelander, Linkoeping University (S)
P a p e r S u b m i s s i o n s
___________________________________________________________________________
We invite submissions of scientific papers to any of the 5 topics listed
above. The papers will be reviewed by the Scientific Committee and accepted
according to their scientific content, originality, quality of presentation,
and relatedness to the conference topic. Please keep to the following
guidelines: Hardcopy submission only, 6-9 pages A4 or USLetter single sided
in Times Roman 10-12pt (or equivalent). Please send 4 copies to the
organizing committee, see address below.
In a first step we are planning to publish the proceedings as Technical
Report of the Austrian Society for Cognitive Science. In a second step
after rewriting the papers and after a second round of review a major
publisher will be approached to publish the best papers in an edited
volume.
For the final versions of the accepted papers electronic submissions are
preferred in one of the following formats: Word, FrameMaker, or Ascii.
Detailed formatting information will be given upon notification of
acceptance.
Submission due January 7, 1997
Notification of acceptance February 28
R e g i s t r a t i o n
___________________________________________________________________________
To register please fill out the registration form at the bottom of this CFP
and send it by...
o Email to franz-markus.peschl at univie.ac.at, or by
o Fax to +43-1-408-8838 (attn. M.Peschl), or by
o Mail to Markus Peschl, Dept.for Philosophy of Science (address below)
Registration Fee (includes admission to talks, presentations, and proceedings):
before April 1st, 1997:
Member * 1000 ATS (about 90 US$)
Non-Member 1500 ATS (about 135 US$)
Student Member ** 400 ATS (about 36 US$)
Student Non-Member 1000 ATS (about 90 US$)
after April 1st, 1997:
Member * 1300 ATS (about 118 US$)
Non-Member 1800 ATS (about 163 US$)
Student Member ** 500 ATS (about 45 US$)
Student Non-Member 1300 ATS (about 118 US$)
*) Members of the Austrian Society of Cognitive Science
**) Requires proof of valid student ID
C o n f e r e n c e S i t e a n d A c c o m o d a t i o n
___________________________________________________________________________
The conference takes place in a small beautiful baroque castle in the
suburbs of Vienna; the address is:
Schloss Neuwaldegg
Waldegghofg. 5
A-1170 Wien
Austria
Tel: +43-1-485-3605
It is surrounded by a beautiful forest and a good (international and
Viennese gastronomic) infrastructure. On the tram it takes only 20 minutes
to the center of Vienna.
(Limited) Accommodation is provided by the castle (about 41 US$ per night
(single), 30 US$ per night, per person (double) including breakfast). Please
contact the telephone number above. You can find more information about
Vienna and accommodation at the Vienna Tourist Board or at the Intropa
Travel agent Tel: +43-1-5151-242. Further information will be available
soon.
D e s t i n a t i o n V i e n n a ?
___________________________________________________________________________
Vienna, Austria, can be reached internationally by plane or train. The
Vienna Schwechat airport is located about 16 km from the city center. From
the airport, the city air-terminal can be reached by bus (ATS 60.- per
person) or taxi (about ATS 400). Rail-passengers arrive at one of the
main stations which are located almost in the city center. From the
air-terminal and the railway stations the congress site and hotels can be
reached easily by underground (U-Bahn), tramway, or bus. A detailed
description will be given to the participants.
In May the climate is mild in Vienna. It is the time when spring is at its
climax and everything is blooming. The weather is warm with occasional
(rare) showers. The temperature is about 18 to 24 degrees Celsius.
More information about Vienna and Austria on the web:
Welcome to Vienna Scene
<http://wtv.magwien.gv.at/e/index.htm>
Vienna City
<http://www.atnet.co.at/Tourism/Vienna/>
Wiener Festwochen - Vienna Festival
<http://www.infosys.tuwien.ac.at/WF/>
Public Transport in Vienna (subway)
<http://metro.jussieu.fr:10001/bin/select/english/austria/vienna>
Welcome to Austria
<http://austria-info.at/">
General information about Austria
<http://www.atnet.co.at/austria/>
Austria Annoted
<http://harvest.Austria.EU.net/Server-in-AT/categories.html>
S c i e n t i f i c C o m m i t t e e
___________________________________________________________________________
R. Born Univ. of Linz (A)
G. Dorffner Univ. of Vienna (A)
E. v. Glasersfeld Univ. of Amherst, MA (USA)
S. Harnad Univ. of Southampton (GB)
M. Peschl Univ. of Vienna (A)
A. Riegler Univ. of Zurich (CH)
H. Risku Univ. of Skovde (S)
S. Sjoelander Linkoeping University (S)
A. v. Stein Neuroscience Institute, La Jolla (USA)
O r g a n i z i n g C o m m i t t e e
___________________________________________________________________________
M. Peschl Univ. of Vienna (A)
A. Riegler Univ. of Zurich (CH)
T i m e t a b l e
___________________________________________________________________________
Submission due January 7, 1997
Notification of acceptance February 28
Early registration due April 1
Final papers due April 14
Conference date May 13-16, 1997
S p o n s o r i n g O r g a n i z a t i o n s
___________________________________________________________________________
o Christian Doppler Laboratory for Expert Systems
(Vienna University of Technology)
o Oesterreichische Forschgungsgemeinschaft
o Austrian Federal Ministry of Science, Transport and the Arts
o City of Vienna
A d d i t i o n a l I n f o r m a t i o n
___________________________________________________________________________
For further information on the conference contact:
Markus Peschl
Dept. for Philosophy of Science
University of Vienna
Sensengasse 8/10
A-1090 Wien
Austria
Tel: +43-1-402-7601/41
Fax: +43-1-408-8838
Email: franz-markus.peschl at univie.ac.at
General information about the Austrian Society for Cognitive Science can be
found on the Society webpage <http://www.univie.ac.at/cognition> or by
contacting
Alexander Riegler
AILab, Dept. of Computer Science
University of Zurich
Winterthurerstr. 190
CH-8057 Zurich
Switzerland
Email: riegler at ifi.unizh.ch
R e g i s t r a t i o n f o r m
___________________________________________________________________________
I participate at the Workshop "New Trends in Cognitive Science (NTCS'97)"
Full Name
........................................................................
Full Postal Address:
........................................................................
........................................................................
........................................................................
Telephone Number (Voice): Fax:
..................................... ..................................
Email address:
........................................................................
[ ] I intend to submit a paper
Payment in ATS (= Austrian Schillings; 1 US$ is currently about 11 ATS).
This fee includes admission to talks, presentations, and proceedings:
Before April 1st, 1997:
[ ] Member * 1000 ATS (about 90 US$)
[ ] Non-Member 1500 ATS (about 135 US$)
[ ] Student Member ** 400 ATS (about 36 US$)
[ ] Student Non-Member 1000 ATS (about 90 US$)
After April 1st, 1997:
[ ] Member * 1300 ATS (about 118 US$)
[ ] Non-Member 1800 ATS (about 163 US$)
[ ] Student Member ** 500 ATS (about 45 US$)
[ ] Student Non-Member 1300 ATS (about 118 US$)
*) Members of the Austrian Society of Cognitive Science
**) Requires proof of valid student ID
Total: .................... ATS
[ ] Visa
[ ] Master-/Eurocard
Name of Cardholder ........................................
Credit Card Number ........................................
Expiration Date .................
Date: ................ Signature: ........................................
Please send this form by...
o Email to franz-markus.peschl at univie.ac.at, or by
o Fax to +43-1-408-8838 (attn. M.Peschl), or by
o Mail to Markus Peschl, Dept.for Philosophy of Science,
Univ. of Vienna, Sensengasse 8/10, A-1090 Wien, Austria
___________________________________________________________________________
AI Lab * Department of Computer Science * University of Zurich
Winterthurerstr. 190 * CH-8057 Zurich, Switzerland * riegler at ifi.unizh.ch